Pages

Thursday, 23 February 2012

Rallye Sunseeker, Manufacturer's round up.

Citroën enter B.R.C.

Citroën
is
pleased to announce that it will be supporting the MSA British Rally
Championship as an official manufacturer for the 2012 season.

With
updated rules for the upcoming season - which specify two-wheel-drive
machines - more emphasis is placed on driver skill, increasing the
opportunity for Citroën to find the next Sébastien
Loeb of the future and also develop its growing young driver
programme
in the UK.

A
number of privateers will drive a Citroën DS3 R3, the 210bhp
customer rally car developed by Citroën Racing in the 2012 MSA
British Rally Championship. With the new rules, Citroën will be
eligible to earn points scored by privateer teams in the
manufacturers’ championship.

The
MSA British Rally Championship remains the largest
and most prestigious national rally championship, comprising six
individual rounds across the UK. It was originally run in 1958 and
earned a license from the Motor Sports Association (MSA) in 1999.

BRC
Manager Mark Taylor commented: ‘It’s great that Citroën,
with such a strong rallying pedigree, has joined the Championship,
and we look forward to working more closely with them going forward.

‘We
recognised the commercial realities currently faced by car
manufacturers and their dealerships and specifically created a
British Championship to attract UK Importers by reducing the usual
barriers and high cost of entry. We are providing them with a
platform to promote products that relate to what is being sold in the
showroom. We are also offering them high quality media products and a
chance to engage in rally themed dealer events. Importantly, they
will have a stakeholder status in the future of this world renowned
motor sport series.’

The Citroën attack for this weekend’s opening round
- Rallye Sunseeker International - is a strong one. Three young guns,
Osian Pryce from Wales, Desi Henry of Northern Ireland, and the
number one seed, fast Finn Jarkko Nikara will line up on Saturday in
Bournemouth with their striking new privately run Citroën DS3 R3’s.

Nikara,
the 25 year old from Saarijarvi in Finland has an impressive C.V. to
date, as he switches to the 210bhp Citroën DS3. The former Finnish
Junior Champion, and 2008 Pirelli European Star Shoot-out champion,
has shone in the British Championship before, finishing sixth in the
2010 series using an R2 specification Renault. He has also been an
extremely fast Group N driver at IRC and WRC level, and now relishes
the chance to drive an R3 machine. “It’s
fantastic to be returning to the BRC with Autosport Technology and to
be driving the Citroën
DS3 R3T – I know this is a very good car and I’m sure we can be
setting fastest stage times. We won’t have time to test the car
before this event, but the plan is to find a pace we’re happy
with.” Jarkko’s first opportunity to drive the car will be in the
event shakedown.

At
number 9, 2011 Citroën Racing Trophy UK winner Desi Henry debuts his
recently acquired DS3 R3. Teamed with co-driver Niall Burns and run
by John McKillop Motorsport, Desi will be one to watch. The 22 year
old from Portglenone in Co. Antrim has only
had a short gravel test to try and learn the very different
characteristics of the turbo-charged DS3, which differs from his
familiar Citroën C2 R2 Max. “The DS3 seems very good. It’s a
very deceiving car at times, as it’s a lot quieter than the C2 Max,
but it’s a fast car. We haven’t had that much mileage in the car,
but certainly we will be trying hard at the weekend, and hopefully on
Thursday’s shakedown we can settle in more. I’m definitely
looking forward to it.”

The
youngest of the Citroën runners is Osian Pryce from Wales, who will
actually celebrate his 19th
birthday on the eve of the rally! Seeded at number 10, Osian started
his rallying career in 2008, competing in the Latvian Rally
Championship from the tender age of 16. On his WRC debut on the 2010
Wales Rally GB, he took class honors by a staggering 22 minutes,
before becoming the 2011 Fiesta Sport Trophy Champion. Now, however,
he has switched to Citroën for 2012. Osian is happy after a test in
the new car. “It’s a big step from last year’s R2 machine, but
I could tell as a driver that Citroën Racing have put a lot of work
into the car. We probably did 80 kilometers or thereabouts at Sweet
Lamb and I really felt at home with DS3. It seems in some ways
effortless to drive, and suits a smooth, tidy style. I am really
looking forward to the Sunseeker and the BRC in the car. Our plan for
the event however is to get a decent finish, as really it will be the
first time we have measured ourselves against this line up of
drivers.” Co-driver for the Welsh youngster is Iestyn Williams,
whilst the car will be run by Andy Davies of Davies Motorsport.

Another
young Welsh driver, Tom Cave has also taken delivery of a DS3, but he
expects to debut it on round two of the British series, the Bulldog.
With the possibility of another DS3 for that round and the fact a
Trophy for the DS3’s will start on the Bulldog rally with generous
prize money, things are looking good for the Citroën drivers in
2012. It all kicks off with the Rallye Sunseeker ceremonial start, at
Poole Quay in Bournemouth where an expected 10,000 plus crowd will
turn out to wave in a new era of the MSA British Rally Championship.
Then twelve loose surface special stages on Saturday will decide the
winners as Jarkko Nikara leads the field into the forests.

Renault debut new Twingo R2 Evolution.

Former
works driver Justin Dale and multiple Rallye Sunseeker winning
co-driver Andrew Bargery will drive a Twingo Renaultsport R2
Evolution on the opening round of the 2012 MSA British Rally
Championship.

The
car, which is the latest variant of the successful 1.6-litre Twingo,
will act as a course car ahead of the main international field and
will be run by Renault Sport Technologies’ own engineers. The
Twingo R2 in its existing form has already tasted success on Rallye
Sunseeker International, a pair of Autosport Technology cars taking
the top two podium steps in Formula 2 in 2011, the ultra reliable
multinational team going on to take the British Teams Rally
Championship at the end of last season.

Dale
has already complimented the Twingo, having driven Pajunen’s car at
a sponsor’s day last year and the R1 variant at this year’s BRC
Media Day. He and Bargery will team up after last contesting the BRC
in a Clio in 2006 to showcase the new Twingo R2 Evo, which will make
its UK debut on the Dorset & Hampshire based event.

Renault
UK’s recent registration to this year’s British Manufacturers
Rally Championship and the new Twingo Renaultsport Trophy coupled
with around a third of the entries on this year’s opening round,
underlines the French marque’s commitment to UK rallying.

“We
are keen to show off the new Evo version of the Twingo R2 and
evaluate its performance on gravel. The British Rally Championship’s
move to a two wheel drive formula is important to Renault and we
intend to be at the forefront with our range of cars,” said Renault
Sport Technologies Sales Manager Jean-Pascal Jocou, who will attend
the event to keep an eye on not only Dale’s progress, but all the
Renault competitors.